Mileposts/Events

MILEPOSTS Somethin's Fishy at Becker Lake

There are prettier pools of water in the White Mountains, but 85-acre Becker Lake, just northwest of Springerville off State Route 60, has other attractions. It's a trophy trout fishery, thanks to a closed season (end of November to midApril) and some restrictions (like "keepers" must be at least 16 inches) that allow the fish to get big enough to brag about. The fishing's best April through early June, then again from October to closing. Fly rods are the weapon of choice at Becker, but a spinning rod and a fly can fill the frying pan as well.

Amenities include a launch area, parking, and rest rooms. There's no overnight camping on site, but there is a commercial campground nearby. Another thing that sets the state's oldest man-made lake apart is a bit of Western lore. Back in the old days, the story goes, luck ran out for some fellas on the wrong side of a tin star, and they ended up sleeping with the fishes literally. They're buried down there. For more information about Becker Lake, call (520) 367-4281 or 333-2123.

Cosmopolitan Sedona

A friend of the magazine who once made her living eating in restaurants and then writing about them says that one of her favorite places to dine among the red rocks of Sedona is an unexpected Mediterranean-Greek-Italian place called Fournos. "It's like a trip to Athens," she opines of the tiny place where reservations are a must. She goes on to call the food "divine," the chef, onetime New York lawyer Demetrios Fournos, "an artist," and his red-haired Roumanian wife and hostess, Shirley, "a mom to everyone." The restaurant, at 3000 W. 89A in West Sedona next to the White House Inn offers dinner at two sittings, 6 and 8 P.M., Thursday through Saturday; brunch is served Sunday at noon. Call (520) 2823331.

Time-tripping

If you can find Haynes on an Arizona map, you're looking at a very old map. Technically, the place doesn't exist anymore. The name came from the Haynes Copper Company, which owned the mine site just northeast of Jerome around the turn of the century. It was abandoned in 1914 and sat vacant for decades before Don and Terry Robertson, a transplanted Iowa farm couple, purchased the property in 1980, intent on converting it into a mining museum. Since only a few of the original buildings remained, the Robertsons rebuilt and added, then turned the place into a tourist attraction by accumulating about 150 old vehicles and an assortment of old mining equipment. Today the Robertsons' property is a repository for a bunch of "old stuff from yesteryear," ranging from an aged sawmill that still works to an ancient power generator that backfires with such enthusiasm that it can be heard five miles away. There's a $3 admission charge to get onto the site, now known as the Gold King Mine. It's not a bad price fo for an afternoon of memory refreshment. Call ahead, (520) 634-0053. Sam Lowe

New Houseboats

Reservations director Virginia Clow says, "The popular myth is that you can't get a houseboat on Lake Powell in summer, but that's not true. You may have to be flexible about what you want, but it is possible to get a boat without making reservations a year in advance." More than 75,000 houseboaters ply the waters of popular Lake Powell each year. Clow says that houseboats added to Lake Powell's inventory last year include "executive," "deluxe," and "luxury" boats that range in length from 50 to 59 feet and offer such amenities as air-conditioning, refrigerators, and gas grills. To inquire about costs and availability, call toll-free (800) 528-6154 or (602) 278-8888 in the Phoenix area.

Pluto Telescope

The telescope used by as tronomer Clyde Tombaugh when he discovered Pluto in 1930 can be viewed by the public for the first time at the site of that momentous event, Flagstaff's Lowell Observatory.

Lowell staff spent more than a year reconditioning the astrographic telescope, which had been in constant use since 1929 and now sits at the end of the observatory's Pluto Walk. For tour information, call (520) 774-2096. Stuart Rosebrook

Recreation Map

A fold-up map with information on 130 metropolitan Phoenix golf courses, 70 shopping centers, and 126 recreational sites (parks, skating rinks, riding stables, racetracks, etc.) is available from Wide World of Maps retail outlets in Phoenix and Mesa for $2.95. The "Metropolitan Phoenix, Recreation, Shopping, and Golf Course Map" includes listings of destinations along with brief descriptions, addresses, and telephone numbers.

From Schoolhouse to B&B

If your childhood memories include being sent to the principal's office for sleeping in class, the Noftsger Hill Inn on a hill overlooking Globe might ease your angst. It's now a bed and breakfast inn, and its hosts hope their guests do drop off and sleep peacefully. The old Noftsger Hill School, built in 1907, had fallen on hard times after the last students grabbed their book bags and left in 1981. That's when Pam and Frank Hulme bought the structure and turned it into a B&B. The inn offers guests four suites huge, because they used to be classrooms and one room. The whole place has been updated, of course, but the 15-foot ceilings are still there, and blackboards still chase along the walls. The old school's